School of Dental Medicine Faculty

DAVID O. QUISSELL Professor and Chair   Craniofacial Biology Mail Stop 8120, RC1-S, Rm L18 11100 12801 E. 17th Ave P.O. Box 6511 Aurora, CO 80045 Phone: 303-724-4560 Fax: 303-724-4580 Email: Click for Email

Education:
PhD, University of Wisconsin – Madison, WI
Postdoctoral Training: University of Wisconsin- Madison, WI

Honors and Awards:
National Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Research Scholar Award
National Institutes of Health; Oral Biology and Medicine Study Section
Associate Editor, Critical Reviews in Oral Biology and Medicine, CRC Press, Inc.
Salivary Researcher of the Year, IADR/AADR Salivary Gland Group
Outstanding Basic Science Instructor, Dental Hygiene Class
Rocky Mountain Study Club Professor of the Year
Chair, Gordon Research Conference on Saliva and Salivary Glands
Chancellor's Award for Promoting and Supporting Diversity

Departmental Affiliations:
Craniofacial Biology, School of Dental Medicine
Biochemistry & Molecular Genetics, SOM
Pediatrics, SOM

Graduate Program Affiliations:
Cancer Biology, pending
Molecular Biology

Research Interests:

Salivary Gland Research & Native American Oral Health
Salivary gland hypofunction is a major oral health problem that affects the quality of life for several million people in the USA.  A variety of conditions can result in the loss of salivary acinar cell secretory function including systemic diseases such as Sjogren’s Syndrome (an autoimmune disease), Head and Neck irradiation, cancer chemotherapy, pharmacological induced xerostomia and oral cancer.  All of these disease conditions or medical treatments have the potential to alter normal salivary acinar cell homeostasis and or accelerate the entry of the acinar cells into apoptosis (cell death).  A fundamental understanding of the molecular events involved in salivary gland acinar cell apoptosis is required if we are to fully comprehend the specific cellular processes that are involved in the loss of salivary gland structure and function.

Rural Native American preschool children rarely receive dental treatment and as a result have one of the world’s highest prevalence and severity of Early Childhood Caries (ECC).  To help eliminate the disparity of preschool dental caries (ECC) on the Native American Reservations, we developed a rural dental oral healthcare model system in which tribal allied health professionals, who have specific training in oral disease prevention, were utilized to implement and sustain an oral disease prevention program focusing on children 0 to 4 years of age.  Using baseline examinations as a comparison, we observed a 50% reduction in caries prevalence and a 50% reduction in untreated decay following 20 months of intervention. This pilot study indicates that specially trained community members can implement and maintain a program effective in reducing ECC.

Recent Publications:
Anderson, S.M., Reyland, M.E., Hunter, S., Barzen, K.A., Diesher, L.M., Quissell, D.O. Etoposide-induced apoptosis in salivary gland acinar cells. Cell Death and Differ. 6: 454-462, 1999.

Reyland, M.E., Anderson, S.M., Matassa, A., Barzen, K.A. and Quissell, D.O. Protein kinase C-? is essential for etoposide-induced apoptosis in salivary acinar cells. J. Biol. Chem. 274: 19115-191123, 1999.

Reyland, M.E., Barzen, K.A., Anderson, S.M., Quissell, D.O., and Matassa, A.A. Activation of protein kinase C is sufficient to induce an apoptotic program in salivary gland acinar cells. Cell Death Differ. 7: 1200-1209, 2000

Catalanotto, F.A., Quissell, D.O., Rekow, D., Van Dyke, T.E. Local, regional and global partnerships in developing a research program. J. Dent. Res. 66: 942-948, 2002

Barroso, A.S., Quissell, D.O., Colepicolo, P. Modulation of SOD activity in rat submandibular glands. Arch Oral Biol. 48: 133-139, 2003

Limesand, K.H., Barzen, K.A., Quissell, D.O., Anderson, S.M. Synergistic suppression of apoptosis in salivary acinar cells by ICF1 and EGF. Cell Death Differ. 10:345-355, 2003

Limesand, K.H., Barzen, K.A., Sanders, L.A., Sclafani, R.A., Raynolds, M.V., Reyland, M.E., Anderson, S.A. and Quissell, D.O. Characterization of rat parotid and submandibular acinar cell apoptosis in primary culture. In Vitro Dev Biol Anim. 139:170-177, 2003

Carneiro, S.M., Zablith, M.B., Kerchove, C.M., Moura-da-Siva, A.M., Quissell, D.O., Markus, R.P., Yamanouye, N. Venom production in long-term primary culture of secretory cells of the Bothrops jararaca venom gland. Toxicon: :1-8, 2005

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